The President of the Swiss Conference of Bishops, Charles Morerod, wants to introduce a national digital register of clergy in the interest of transparency. Such a system would allow “every parish to check via smartphone whether there are any allegations or restrictions” concerning a particular clergy member, Morerod said in an interview with the Neue Zürcher Zeitung, published on Thursday. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox Such a system is currently being introduced in his diocese of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg, Morerod said. France is the role model in the area; there, a digital system already exists, the bishop added. As for how it would work, priests would receive an ID card with a QR code; when hiring a priest, parishes could then check whether the person has a criminal history. According to Morerod, not everyone at the Conference of Bishops is convinced. This is because the French system is less well known in German-speaking Switzerland, he said.
